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seated-hamstring-stretch

Seated Hamstring Stretch

The seated hamstring stretch is excellent for stretching the hamstrings, calf, and IT band (to a lesser extent.)

But you don’t want to make the mistake of rounding your lower back.

For many people, repetitive flexion (rounding forward) of the lower back has lead to spinal disc injuries such as herniations or ruptures.

In fact, one study in Denmark found that people with greater lower back flexibility had a HIGHER risk of lower back injuries!

The idea is that most back injuries happen when the lower back is flexed (curled forward) towards the end of its range of motion. Those with more flexible lower backs have an easier getting into this position, and are therefore more likely to injure themselves in this way.

So, to make a long story short, don’t round your back!

Keep your back straight and keep the stretch focused on your hamstrings.

Start

seated hamstring stretch 1Sit down with your legs straight out in front of you.

Use the muscles of your legs to draw the knees towards the floor, straightening your legs.

Rotate the thighbones inwards, toward one another.

Activate the muscles along the front of your shins to flex your toes up toward your body, stretching your calves.

Just sit like this for a few seconds, keeping your back straight and weight grounded through your sit bones

If you are not super flexible, you should feel a pretty good stretch along the calves, hamstrings, and IT band while just maintaining this position.

Before You Fold Forward, Remember, Don’t Do This!

seated hamstring stretch 2Remember – keep your lower back straight when reaching forward! Don’t round it!

Fold Forward

seated hamstring stretch 3Keeping your head upright and your back as straight as possible, reach forward along your legs.

You should feel an even more intense stretch in your thighs and, to a lesser extent, in your upper calf muscles.

Stop folding forward once you feel yourself about to lose your straight back / neutral spine.

In this picture you can see that I have gone a little too far. My lower back has begun to round.

The idea here is to stretch the hamstrings and not the lower back. Once the lower back rounds forward, we are stretching the lower back.

So stop where you can maintain a straight back, and hold that position for 20-30 seconds.

That’s all there is to the seated hamstring stretch!